hey, first time visitor to this site, but lifetime fitness freak (former collegiate swimmer, and now at the gym every day lifting/cross-training).

5 days ago at preacher curl, started with too heavy of a weight. When completely extended at rep 4, felt intense, strange, buckling in lower bicep area. Pain immediately, and weakness, clearly a significant injury. My right bicep now looks different: bascially no muscle in lower bicep area, and when touched I can't locate the tendon. My doctor took a quick look and thinks it's a streched tendon/ligament (not quite sure of his use of words). Prescribed some pain pills, and said to take it easy for a week.

I'm beginning to wonder if it is more severe than that. Will this injury heal on its own? I'm not a novice when it comes to the gym, and very high threshhold for pain. But, this has me worried. If, in fact, this is more serious than we previously thought, what needs to be done?

I plan to get another opinion asap, but just wanted some input at to the possible extent of this injury. Any thoughts would be appreciated. Thanks.

Welcome to FT. Just what does your bicep look like? Is there a large bulg near the shoulder? If so, I would find a sports doc immediately as you have probable torn the tendon. Which means you need a surgery to repair, and the sooner the better as you don't want the scar tissue to stunt the healing process. Expect aroung 12 weeks of rehab after surgery.

Chad, thanks for the reply. No bulge in the shoulder, but about the bottom 1/4 of the bicep has curled up, leaving an obvious void in the right arm. It's beginning to feel a lot better, but still looks the same, which is why I'm concerned. Is it possible that the tendon is simply pulled? And, if so, will it go back to normal eventually?

If it were me, I would be seeing a doctor ASAP. Anytime that you have malformation, ("bottom 1/4 of the bicep has curled up...) then you really should seek medical advise. I would hate to think that you didn't see the doctor until it was too late, because of something you read on a discussion board. As I tried to say earlier, if you have done damage, then the treatment needs to be done soon, or it may not heal as well as possible.

It could possibly be a torn or ruptured disat bicep.
When the distal biceps tendon ruptures, it usually sounds and feels like a pop directly in front of the elbow. At first the pain is intense. The pain often subsides quickly after a complete rupture because tension is immediately taken off the pain sensors in the tendon. Swelling and bruising in front of the elbow usually develop shortly after the pop. The biceps may appear to have balled up near the elbow. The arm often feels weak with attempts to bend the elbow, lift the shoulder, or twist the forearm into supination (palm up).

The distal biceps tendon sometimes tears only part of the way. When this happens, a pop may not be felt or heard. Instead, the area in front of the elbow may simply be painful, and the arm may feel weak with the same arm movements that are affected in a complete rupture.

Tearing the distal bicep may also ball up more toward the shoulder.
Doctors usually treat a ruptured long head of biceps tendon without surgery. This is especially true for older individuals who can tolerate loss of arm strength or if the injury occurs in the nondominant arm.

Not having surgery usually only results in a moderate loss of strength. The short head of the biceps is still attached and continues to supply strength to raise the arm up. Flexion of the elbow may be affected, but supination (the motion of twisting the forearm such as when you use a screwdriver) is usually affected more. Not repairing a ruptured biceps reduces supination strength by about 20 percent.

Nonsurgical measures could include a sling to rest the shoulder. Patients may be given anti-inflammatory medicine to help ease pain and swelling and to help return people to activity sooner after a biceps tendon rupture. These medications include common over-the-counter drugs such as ibuprofen.

Doctors may have their patients work with a physical or occupational therapist. At first, your therapist will give you tips how to rest your shoulder and how to do your activities without putting extra strain on the sore area.

Your therapist may apply ice and electrical stimulation to ease pain. Exercises are used to gradually strengthen other muscles that help do the work of a normal biceps muscle.

I just visited a sports surgeon this morning. I tore my bicep tendon...down by the elbow..not up by the shoulder. We mostly talked about getting it fixed. He said that most people under 60 choose to get it repaired. He did say that the pain would subside and it would be just a matter of dealing will the deformation. You can lose some strength but not really enough to be too concerned about.

I chose to have the suregery next Tuesday. I don't like the deformation and just wnated it back to normal. Easy out patient surgery that takes about 1.5 hrs....with about a 3 month total re-hab. This clinic did both my shoulders so I know how good they are.

I had my distal elbow tendon repaired Aug 12 after a July 30 injury. Two incisions, no pins. Seem to have gone fine, but my doctor not the greatest communicator. Was in cast for 3 weeks, then a removable cast for about 2 1//2 more so I could start bending it. Doctor said no physio needed, not to do anything weight bearing until three months from surgery, which is now. Only problem I have is a tingling on top of forarm, he said likely "bumped" the nerve, or the cast was too tight, said should resolve. What I really don't know is what exercises should be done or avoided, and how long until I can get back to full weight? Any ideas or experiences?
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Quoting from dougd:

Matt

I just visited a sports surgeon this morning. I tore my bicep tendon...down by the elbow..not up by the shoulder. We mostly talked about getting it fixed. He said that most people under 60 choose to get it repaired. He did say that the pain would subside and it would be just a matter of dealing will the deformation. You can lose some strength but not really enough to be too concerned about.

I chose to have the suregery next Tuesday. I don't like the deformation and just wnated it back to normal. Easy out patient surgery that takes about 1.5 hrs....with about a 3 month total re-hab. This clinic did both my shoulders so I know how good they are.

Hi, I have torn my disat tendon in my left arm, I am a freelance cameraman with no insurance & have to keep working. Does anyone know if it is possible to avoid surgery with a complete tear (of the tendon) off the bone and how long it may take to heal without surgery. I think I could deal with a little less power in my left arm as I am right handed. At 51 years old I dont care about how it looks, just getting back to work is priority one. Also will I be able to play guitar as easily as before?
Any response will be much appreciated!